Hospital Visits
by thebestintheworld123
Summary: After a spinal injury, Neji must rely on Tenten and his nurses to take care of him. Can Tenten finally express her feelings for him?
1. Chapter 1

*CRACK*

The sound made Tenten cringe. Hopefully it was one of the enemies. It came from the direction where Neji and Lee were fighting. It's not like she could look back and see who it was. She had a 250 pound enemy to deal with. She finally managed to defeat him.

"Tenten!" Lee yelled

"I'm coming." She replied

She made her way over to the clearing Lee had found and froze at the sight.

"What ... what happened?" She asked

"I was watching his back, but one of them ended up getting past me. The next thing I knew, he was on the ground." Lee said getting emotional

Neji clearly looked like he was in pain — serious pain. That crack she heard was his spine. His back was deformed from the impact. She couldn't look at it.

"Lee, we have to go. He needs to be at the hospital right now." She said frantically

He nodded. They dashed back to the village. The whole time they ran, Neji never moved. She was afraid the injury had killed him already. It was hard to see him like that. She never thought he of all people would end up like this. The mission was supposed to be simple.

They finally arrived at the village and ran full speed to the hospital. Villagers gasped as they saw only a flash of color pass by them.

"HE NEEDS A MEDIC RIGHT NOW!" Lee yelled

A team of medical ninja quickly ran to the injured man and took him away. Lee and Tenten could do nothing but sit in the waiting room to receive the news. It had been eight hours. Night soon fell and they had to leave.

It killed both of them to be so helpless. Lee never went to sleep that night. He fully blamed himself for the accident. All his frustrations were released in the training grounds. If he had anger, he better use it for training right? He worked himself to pure exhaustion.

The sun had finally risen. It was the longest night either of them could remember. They met each other at the hospital and sat in the waiting room. It was another six hours until they were allowed to see him. As they made their way into the room, they saw him sleeping on the bed.

"Is ... is he okay?" Tenten asked

The nurse replied, "I'm afraid that spinal injuries are very serious. Mr. Hyuga's spine was broken. We were able to keep him alive, but he is paralyzed from the waist down. We were going to wait until he wakes up to give him the news."

"So, he can't fight anymore?" Lee asked

"I'm afraid not." She said

Lee bursted out in tears, "I'm sorry Neji!" He gave a speech on youthfulness and how he had taken his away. The nurse took him out of the room due to how emotional he became.

Tenten made her way over to the side of his bed and held his hand. He was unreasonably cold, so she pulled his blankets over his chest and arms. Just as she did this, he opened one of his eyes. He had to readjust them to the light.

"Tenten? Where am I?" He asked

"You're in the hospital." She said as she brought his hand to her lips

"What was that for?" He asked taking his hand away

"Neji, I'm sorry. I should have been helping you with your battle."

He squinted his eyes, "Why are you acting so weird"

She chuckled at his observation and scooted away from him, "Sorry."

They sat in a peaceful silence until the nurse came back in.

"I see your awake now. Has she told you why your here?" She asked

"Apparently something went wrong during a battle." He answered

"I know this is hard to hear, but ... your injury was very serious. You are paralyzed from the waist down." The nurse said

He sat there for a little bit while he gathered his thoughts. He tried to move his legs, but nothing happened. He sighed and gave up.

"So, what your saying is that I can't be a ninja anymore?" He stated

The nurse nodded.

"And I would need assistance for a majority of tasks now? I would need a wheelchair." He said

Another nod

Tenten spoke up, "Neji, I would be happy to help you."

"That will not be necessary. I do not want your help." He replied

"But why.."

He looked at her, "I do not want you to dress me and bath me."

"It doesn't have to be awkward. I want to help you." She begged

He did not reply. He was good at ending conversations he did not want to be a part of.

The nurse tried to ease the tension, "He will not be released for another eight weeks. It will take time for him to heal. It would be nice if he had someone for support. Things like this usually take an emotional toll."

Neji rolled his eyes. Emotional support? He had never heard anything so far from the truth.

"Fine Neji, I won't help you, but I will come here everyday to check on you." She said as she stormed out


	2. Chapter 2

Just as she had promised, Tenten arrived at the hospital the next day. She knocked on the door to Neji's room and slowly opened it. Her eyes landed on the man to make sure that he was not disturbed. He is Neji after all, so it wouldn't take much to get him in a bad mood. She walked in the room with a vase full of flowers.

"What is that?" He said flatly

"What these? They're flowers Neji. Ever heard of them?" She asked jokingly

He clearly didn't find her joke funny, "All right you've had your fun. Now, tell me why they are with you."

"They're for you. Don't you like them?" She asked

He looked at her blankly, "You should know I don't care for flowers."

"Oh yeah." She said slowly recollecting her memory

She put the flowers next to his bed and pulled a chair out so she could sit next to him.

"I'm sorry you have to sit here for the next few weeks. I know it's hard for you working your schedule around your condition-" she was immediately cut off

"Condition? I'm fine." He said matter-of-factly

"I should have used a better word sorry. But I'm serious Neji. What are you going to do now? Have you given any thought to it? You're going to be limited after you get out of that bed." She said trying to get an answer out of him

"I'll get by just fine." He retorted

She stroked his hand with her fingers, "I just don't want you to be angry and miserable when you're healed."

He quickly removed her hand from his, "You don't have to touch me."

She folded her hands in her lap. It hurt her to see him treat her with such little respect, but that's just the way he is. She had never gotten used to it.

She reached for one of the flowers and took it out of the vase. The petals were picked off one by one. It was not a game, she simply just wanted the thing gone. He didn't like it, so what was the use in keeping them. He noticed what she was doing and grabbed the stem.

"What are you doing now?" He asked

She never looked at him, "Nothing, just fiddling around with it. It's not like you'd miss a few flowers."

He took the flowers out of her hands and lay them next to himself, "Don't destroy them. They are a gift." He said with a fraction of a grin

She smiled, "So you do like them?"

He gave no reply.

They were interrupted when Neji's nurse came in the room.

"Are you ready for your medicine?" Her eyes wandered over to Tenten, "Oh, you have a visitor. How nice."

"Do I have to leave while you give him his medicine?" Tenten asked

The nurse replied, "It is not required, but if he is not comfortable with you being in here while it happens, you will need to leave." She looked over to Neji, "Do you have a problem with someone being in here right now?"

He nodded, "Thank you for coming Tenten."

"Can I come back in after you take your medicine? Visiting hours aren't over yet." She begged

"No, I think it's best if you leave. You'll come back tomorrow right?" He asked

She nodded and pushed her chair back where it came from. There it was again; the pain of rejection. He didn't want to even talk to her for another minute. Times like these are what makes her question her decision to care for him. She walked outside the hospital and collected her thoughts before going home. It didn't take long for her to come to the decision of not seeing him tomorrow. If it was going to be as awkward and heartbreaking as today was, what was the point?


	3. Chapter 3

Neji had begun to grow tired of looking at the same four walls for days now. This was his third day in the hospital, but to him it felt like eternity. Visiting hours had started an hour ago. Why wasn't Tenten there? Was it about those stupid flowers? He didn't know. For some reason he missed her company. The only people that came in were people dressed in scrubs. They came in every two hours or so to change his position so he would not get pressure sores. He sighed, trying desperately to hold his anger in.

'Why did this have to happen to me? I'm one of the best ninja in this village. Now what am I? I'm useless! I have no control over half my body now. Why? Is it because of that one misstep that I'm here. Of course it is. I was clumsy and foolish and it cost me everything. I might as well forget about being alone. I have to rely on everybody now. This is just great!' He thought to himself

He threw the vase Tenten had used for the flowers to the floor. The loud crash was strangely soothing to him. He tried to stomp on the shards of glass, but was instead reminded of his limitations. He let out another sigh and punched the bed. The noise from the vase drew in a nurse.

"What happened?" She asked

"I threw it! I hate this place!" He yelled at her

She began cleaning up his mess, "I know it is hard for you right now Mr. Hyuga, but be patient. You will learn that being paralyzed is not the end of the world."

"Oh, thanks. Try telling me that when your legs are strapped to a table, you have to have someone clean out stool from your body, and you can't do anything on your own! Do not tell me that my life isn't over! You have no idea what this feels like!" He snapped back

She looked away from him, "I was only trying to help. I've seen people who are paralyzed who live amazing lives. If you choose to look at this the way you are now, then you will become depressed. I'm simply telling you this to warn you. You can either change your attitude or live miserably for the rest of your life."

He only rolled his eyes as a response.

The minute she left the room, he went back to staring at the wall. The clicks from the clock were enough to drive anyone insane. The only thing that he looked forward to anymore was when the door opened. He had not realized how much he would miss visitors until he had none. He could not care less if Lee came in. His mind only focused on Tenten. Maybe he had gotten so used to her coming that he expected her to walk through the door every day. As if on cue, he heard the creaking of the door henge as it swung open. There she was.

"Hello Tenten." He said

She smiled, "You know, I wasn't planning on coming today." She sat down, "Your nurse told me about your little outburst right before I came in."

"Oh please. That woman will do anything to get on my nerves. Is that really all you have to say to me?" He asked

"No, I just wanted to see your reaction. I came here to see if you wanted anything. Maybe something to ease your boredom." She offered

He thought for a little while, "I would like some crossword puzzles."

"Really?" She asked in disbelief

"What is the problem?"

"I don't know, I just wasn't expecting that. I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't crossword puzzles." She said through a fit of giggles

"You have too much fun at my expense." He told her

"Sorry Neji. I just never knew you could be so funny."

A moment of silence washed over the room. Eventually Neji was the one to break it.

"Can I ask you something?" He said looking at her

The question caught her off guard, "Sure, what is it?"

He sighed, "When I finally get out of here, I will need help doing a few things. You know, daily activities. I was wondering if you would be able to help me." He wanted to say much more, but he didn't know how to word it.

She was surprised by what he said, "Whatever you need, I'll do it."

"You do know what this entails right?" He looked away as a blush began to creep up his cheeks, "I would need help getting out of bed, bathing, and just getting around."

She had never seen him so vulnerable, "I don't mind at all. If you need help, I want to be the one to help you."

"Are you sure?" He asked

She smiled at him, "I hate seeing you like this. Your depressed Neji. If I can do anything to make your life easier, then that's what I'll do."

A/N: I am open to suggestions for later chapters. If you have an idea, please feel free to let me know. Thanks for reading!


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